GEEKERELLA
By Ashley Poston

• Genre: Romantic Comedy, Young Adult, Nerd, Fandom
• Published: Reprinted May 15, 2018
• Publisher: Quirk Books

Part romance, part love letter to nerd culture, and all totally adorbs, Geekerella is a fairy tale for anyone who believes in the magic of fandom. Geek girl Elle Wittimer lives and breathes Starfield, the classic sci-fi series she grew up watching with her late father. So when she sees a cosplay contest for a new Starfield movie, she has to enter. The prize? An invitation to the ExcelsiCon Cosplay Ball, and a meet-and-greet with the actor slated to play Federation Prince Carmindor in the reboot. With savings from her gig at the Magic Pumpkin food truck (and her dad’s old costume), Elle’s determined to win…unless her stepsisters get there first.

Teen actor Darien Freeman used to live for cons—before he was famous. Now they’re nothing but autographs and awkward meet-and-greets. Playing Carmindor is all he’s ever wanted, but the Starfield fandom has written him off as just another dumb heartthrob. As ExcelsiCon draws near, Darien feels more and more like a fake—until he meets a girl who shows him otherwise.

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MY THOUGHTS

I’ve been wanting to read this book for over a year. And I FINALLY did! I picked it up during BookCon 2018. And even met the author Ashley Poston.

If the title doesn’t give it away, this is Ashley’s take on the classic Cinderella. But with a nerdy twist. I can’t even begin to describe how happy this book makes me feel. It’s not only a twist on a story we all know so well. BUT it’s truly a hats off to us, the nerds of the world. The ones of us that live for the fandom. The ComicCon/Cosplayers of the world. Thanks you Ms. Poston, we love you too! 

Ella is a 17 year old girl with dreams of escaping her “family”. Yes her step mom is awful and so is her one step sister. I literally wanted to scream every time they opened their mouths. Her step monster controls and uses Ella at every turn. She goes out of her way to make her life a living hell.

There’s only one thing that brings Ella joy, the show Starfield. She even has a blog dedicated to it. My kindred heart! It’s really the only thing that keeps her sane. Although to her, it’s way more than a show (seriously could relate). It’s every good memory she shared with her father and her mother’s legacy. It’s everything she holds dear. AND it’s being turned into a movie. But then they go on and cast Darien Freeman. A Dawson’s Creek like pretty boy actor with an intense fan base. And her world gets turned upside down.

Let’s not discount Darien just yet you know the saying, don’t judge a book by it’s cover. Well don’t do that to Darien. He’s like a Transformer, there’s more than meets the eyes. Well, way more than his good looks and stardom. He has his struggles and insecurities just like any regular person. And for him it’s more a matter of trust. He really has no idea who he can trust and that includes his own father. Who happens to be Darien’s manager. Yeah, big drama there.

Fate brings them together, in a Timey-Wimey kind of way, and that’s where I leave this. Because as you know, you need to read to find out what happens. And trust me, you do want to read this!

What I loved about Ms. Poston’s writing is that she is not afraid to tackle touchy subjects like Hollywood whitewashing. Which in our nerdoms, a lot of times we have to face that awful circumstance.

Whitewashing is a casting practice in the film industry of the United States in which white actors are cast in historically non-white character roles.

Did I mention that Darien is not Caucasian and it’s not a factor in the book? I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again. Race shouldn’t matter in a relationship. So I love books that display that. Love is love no matter who you are.

One of my favorite thing about this geeky take is how Ms. Poston merges in the important parts of the OG Cinderella. There’s no pumpkin carriage, but there’s a big ole Vegan pumpkin food truck. Instead of a fairy godmother, there’s a crazy design student. Rather than a fancy ball, it’s a Cosplay event. She does a really good job making it her own world. And I legit would LOVE to attend ExcelsiCon!

I happily give Geekerella 5 Nerd Glasses out of 5. It’s funny. Touching. Some times sad. BUT over all, an incredible version of Cinderella that touches all the right feels.  If you’ve been thinking about reading it, do it right now so we could fangirl together!

And I’ll leave you with:

Look to the Stars.
Aim.
Ignite.